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Rucka, Fernández Explore Immortal Warriors in Modern Age with The Old Guard

The last time writer Greg Rucka and artist Leandro Fernández teamed up, it earned them an Eisner nomination. That was for 2003’s “Operation: Crystal Ball” run on Rucka’s acclaimed “Queen & Country” series. Now, they’re about to create some more magic together.

As revealed to Entertainment Weekly, they’ve collaborated on a new comic for Image called “The Old Guard,” which follows a group of immortal soldiers in the modern age. The concept has roots in a horror anthology Rucka had been kicking around for several years, but it eventually transformed into something else.

“It was influenced, in no small part, by the passing of my father,” he tells EW. “[A]nd the issues of morality and mortality that are raised in that.”

The device of soldiers who never die has allowed Rucka and Fernández to go to some fascinating places with their characters. The protagonist and leader of the troop, Andy, has been a warrior since the era of Ancient Greece (that’s why her full name is Andronika the Scythian), and other roles include two veterans of the Crusades, an Italian knight, and a Moor. There’s also a French thief from the 15th century and a contemporary American soldier who dies, then realizes she’s also immortal when she comes back to life.

As for the art, Fernández says “There will be flashbacks to ancient times. There will be a relationship between now and what happens before. Different conflicts, different wars.”